Bouble Digits

The first thing I heard this morning was Ryan stating to me proudly,"hey Dad, I'm double digits!"

My boy is 10 years old.Ryan maximized his birthday. From early in the morning until a later-than-usual bedtime, the day was centered around him and things he likes to do. We began by participating in the Meridian School District-wide fun run. Last year he and I ran it together. This year he ran it to win and ditched his old man finishing in the top fifteen (of all students in the District).We ran right out of the track and headed to his next event. Baseball. His love of the sport is growing, thanks to all of the encouragement support he is receiving from his family, and the success he is experiencing. His coach "gets him" and has really invested in his development. So naturally, that helps Lisa and I really enjoy baseball, too. We ate lunch at one of his favorite restaurants and then headed to the bowling alley. After we all bowled ten frames, we came back to the house, where Rick set up a fun obstacle course in the park, with some of his P.E. gear, for the kids to run through in timed competition. This was requested by Ry, as he tends to enjoy competition in any form. We ate pizza and opened presents (many of which, were green). We ate cake and per Ryan's request, played games until way past his bedtime. A nice boy like this kid deserved all that attention. Happy Birthday Ryan

Blue n Orange

Saturday was the annual Blue and Orange Game at Bronco stadium. We, along with the Goehners and Epa, took the kids down before Ryan's baseball game for the "kids' experince" that Coach Peterson had set up for kids in our community, prior to the scrimmage.

Our kids were not disappointed. Will and Abby ran routs for Jeremy Avery and Ryan caught passes from Doug Martin. Though we later learned that the kids were not supposed to be recieving autographs from players, Ry was able to have #22 sign his hat.

When the players went to the locker room, Coach Pete rallied the kids at center field for an inspirational speech, He implored them all to work hard in school and to keep their rooms clean. Dude really knows how to make and keep fans--parents loved that message. ***notice Ryan standing in the picture's foreground***

Our kids are true, blue Boise State Bronco fans.

Go Blue!

He is Risen, Indeed!

Our Easter Sunday was full of family fun, as always. We celebrated as a family over at the Goehners' along with Ema and Epa, and Brendan's parents. The kids hunted eggs in the backyard and we all rested well.

Saturday prior to Easter we met up with the Fairbanks family, who are in town visiting from Indonesia. It was freezing outside (literally), so the kids made quick work of the Church's Easter Egg hunt before we went home to thaw out.

Fireman

Uncle Drew serves the Marion Co. Rural Fire District. We went for a visit.

Play Ball!...

Ryan is playing baseball. He is very excited about the competitive nature of the Cal Ripkin league that he has joined. He has proudly been telling anyone who will listen, that he tried out and that he was chosen, by the coaches, for his speed. He is also excited by the end of year tournament that decides a league champion.

The first few games were cold....really cold. Yesterday's game start-time was 9am and it was below freezing when the first pitch was thrown. He is having fun learning a new game and its nuances -- you know, important stuff like how to spit sunflower seeds and stay warm in the dugout.

As you can tell, he runs the bases well. He has played primarily 3B and CF. His first game, he made a great force out play off a grounder.

Baseball will become more fun as the weather turns and his parents don't have to bundle quite so much to stay warm at the games.

The Happiest Place on Earth

Friday was our first time to be in Disneyland. Abby celebrated her birthday by having breakfast with Minnie and friends. The kids enjoyed the costumes from the theme house we rented and dressed up. The park was quite empty and we hardly waited for any rides.

Shamu Slam!

Thursday Dec 17, took us to SeaWorld. The weather was perfect! Sunny-75, not a cloud in the sky...and not a person in the park either. It was virtually empty. We did not wait to get into any attractions. Our family OWNED the place.

These crazies sat in the Shamu show soak zone, two rows away from Shamu's predatory grin. They had a terrific experience, and were indeed soaked. That is something none of them will ever forget...not even Doodle.

More details pending. Stay tuned to my blog, I will be plopping up entries throughout Christmas break to chronicle the trip (and to also "out-blog" my Aunt Sandi)

To Disneyland

Wed., Dec 16 was a special day, as we embarked on a fantastic week in Southern California. It was Abby's first time flying. She was nervous, but as you can imagine, she LOVED the take-off.

The kids were great travelers.

Our first stop was Universal Studios. We were on Benj Goehner's turf...Hollywood. He came to meet us for lunch at Bubba Gump's and introduced us to the glories of theme-park touring.

Thanksgiving

I just realized as I was blogging, that I blogged no Thanksgiving photos.

Ryan and Will went with the big boys as we warmed up our shotguns to prepare for a hunting trip with Dad. What a great helper.

"always treat it like it's loaded" was the first and most important hunter safety message for the little guys. They enjoyed success with the BB gun.

Abby and Grandma K preparing for Thanksgiving dinner at Aunt Sandy's house. (see Sandy's blog for thanksgiving dinner photos)

Grandma Kinnaman came to the house to make Christmas crafts and to teach the kids new games while we hunted in Central Oregon.

Notice that Dad is not carrying his gun. He spent the afternoon working with Pepper, his English Setter, on finding birds. She did a great job!We enjoyed perfect weather. What a great hunting trip. Thanks Dad.